


We're Alright

by darkgirl11



Category: One Direction (Band)
Genre: Break Up, Crying, Fluff, Little Mix friendship, M/M, Niall can rap, One Direction songs, Reunions, Sad Niall, Singing, actually lots of singing, not sorry, sharing Niall, solo careers, zianourry - Freeform
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-06-21
Updated: 2017-06-21
Packaged: 2018-11-16 21:46:37
Rating: Mature
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 1
Words: 13,532
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11261637
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/darkgirl11/pseuds/darkgirl11
Summary: After a dysfunctional performance at a concert, the One Direction boys get into a fight. They come to the conclusion that they should quit and just call it over. That includes calling their relationship together off. Niall didn’t want it to be over. He certainly didn’t want his relationship with them to be over either. While they all walk out of his life, Niall stays and sings in hope that one day they will find their way back to him.Zianourry Niall centric  but Niall was with Harry first! Set before Zayn left!





	We're Alright

They had just gotten their asses chewed out by Paul and management about their worst performance _ever._ They had heard some fans booing them because they were forgetting the lyrics to their songs more than they should have. Sometimes the boys would sing a totally different song and it was starting to just become annoying to some of the fans because it looked like they weren’t taking it as seriously as some of the fans wanted them to be.

 

“What the hell was _that_?”

 

They were all in their shared house. Harry had been Niall since their band had been formed so they were together for a solid year before it happened. Along the way Niall fell for the other boys so they formed a sharing Niall relationship. Niall was convinced that he was going to marry them one day but right now that seemed shaky. Niall looked up at Harry when he said those words, half expecting Louis to be the one to say that.

 

Niall was sitting on the couch next to Liam while Zayn had his hands on the island in the kitchen, trying to block out the boys in the living room. Louis was sitting until he glared at Harry and stood up to face him. Niall watched as Liam looked up from his hands when Louis hissed, “You’re one to talk, Harry! You fucked up the lyrics to almost every song!”

 

“At least I was always on key!”

 

“On key? You call laughing your way through a song ‘on key’?!”

 

“My laugh sure sounded better than whatever you were doing tonight! And the rest of you lot, too!”

 

Liam stood up next and Niall could feel Zayn’s gaze on them from the kitchen. Niall watched as and his lovers got into a screaming match with each other. Liam tried to calm them down but then Harry and Louis double teamed him before going back at each other’s throats. Niall felt tears prick at his eyes, he was terrified that something bad was going to happen.

 

Zayn sighed and shook his head at the sight of Niall covering his ears with his hands. As much as he wanted to comfort his lover, he didn’t want to get himself involved in this mess that they were all creating. Despite having his hands covering his ears to try to block out their yelling, one shout came through as clear as day and forced everyone to be quiet.

 

“Then maybe we should just stop this, all of this!”

 

Niall looked up and removed his hands in disbelief. Louis was the one who had said that. Just stop all of this? Stop the band? What was he thinking? Sure, they had a really rough performance but that shouldn’t be enough to leave the band. Surely none of the boys were going to agree with him… right?

 

“I think that’s the most brilliant thing you’ve said all night.”

 

The blonde gasped at Louis, no… this couldn’t be happening. Liam wouldn’t let this happen. Liam was practically Daddy Direction. He loved this band probably more than the fans did, and there were a lot of crazy One Direction fans. Niall felt his heart pang in pain as Liam muttered the words he never would’ve expected him to say, “I think it’s for the best that we take a break from the band and… each other.”

 

Louis still held a glare in Harry’s direction, who returned it just as dangerously. Niall turned his head in the direction of Zayn’s soft yet strained voice, “It’s over, lads… I’m gonna go pack my bags…”

 

Niall finally stood up as he watched Zayn shake his head and retreat down the hall towards his room. Liam sighed as he heard Zayn’s door shut, this was really happening, wasn’t it? Niall tried to say something but Harry walked right by him without giving him a glance.

 

“Harry! Wait! Where are you going?” 

“I’m leaving, Niall, it’s over.”

 

“B-But… where are we going, then? This is our home… where are we-“

 

“There’s no more _‘we,’_ Niall! Don’t you get it?! It’s over, _everything!”_

 

Tears fell down Niall’s cheeks at those words. What had he done to make Harry and the others break up with him? Niall was about to say something when Harry rolled his eyes and hissed, “We’re over, Niall. I want nothing to do with this band anymore and if I keep you around with me then you’re just going to be a constant reminder of this stupid band. You can’t follow us around anymore, Niall, it’s time for you to grow the fuck up.”

 

“Harry, you can’t-“

 

“I can’t do what, Louis?! I’m done here! I’m done with all of you, it’s _all_ over!”

 

Harry stormed off down the hall to his and Niall’s shared room and slammed the door shut. As soon as he heard the door shut, Niall broke down to the floor in a crumpled mess. He felt someone bring him into their chest, he figured it was Liam. Someone was rubbing his back and their head was on his shoulder trying to whisper sweet nothings into his ear. He figured it was Louis. It only made him cry harder that neither of them were Harry.

* * *

 

When Niall woke up, they were gone. His eyes were red and puffy from crying but he knew it was just the beginning. He first crawled into Zayn’s room. Everything was gone from his clothes to the cologne he would wear. There were still sheets on his bed and Niall smiled softly at that. He figured Zayn did it so if Niall missed him he could crawl into the bed and still be able to at least smell him.

 

The blonde closed Zayn’s door and then moved on to Louis’s room. It was basically the same as Zayn’s and when he checked Liam’s room afterwards it was identical. He felt his heart racing as he stood in front of his and Harry’s shared room. There was some small optimistic part of him that believed Harry was on the other side of the door with his arms wide open waiting for Niall to tell him it was all a nightmare.

 

But it wasn’t.

 

When he opened their door, he fell to the floor and turned into a ball of tears. All of Harry’s things were gone. The only thing left in the room that were both of theirs were the pictures of them on their nightstands and dressers. How could they all leave him like this? He was going to be all alone in here because they knew there was no way he was going to leave all their memories behind that they created in this house.

 

Niall and Harry were the only ones to share a room because Niall could never sleep alone. Sure, the other boys would sleep in their room together sometimes but they liked their alone time as well. The only reason all of them are together is because Niall and Harry were together first and then the others just came into their relationship soon afterwards. To anyone else it would be weird but to them it worked out perfectly.

 

The week was hard. Niall lacked the usual energy he had. He moved around the house in a sluggish manner and barely ate. He mainly laid on the couch, not daring to enter his room with Harry or any of the other boys’ rooms. They brought back too many memories that he didn’t want to face right now. He was curled up in a ball when he reached for the TV remote and turned it on to find something to watch.

 

He was clicking through the channels when he saw that people were talking about One Direction. Niall felt tears sting his eyes as a woman stated, “It has been confirmed that One Direction has drifted apart but it is not determined whether this will be a hiatus or if the band is done for good. It appears a recent show is the cause of this split and reports say that they have seen each member except for Niall Horan leaving their shared house.”

 

Niall cringed more and more listening to the women continue, “We can only assume that each of the boys have gone home during this time off. We’ve already reached out to some of the bandmates but have not heard anything back from them on the matter. All we can do now is hope that One Direction does not become like NSYNC and go on a hiatus that will never be picked up on.”

 

He turned off the TV after that. He couldn’t listen to it anymore. He covered himself in his blanket and crawled down the hall. He didn’t dare to look at himself anymore. He already knew he looked like death warmed over him because he cried about five times every day. When he made it to his and Harry’s room, he took a deep breath to get himself ready to enter again.

 

The blonde turned on the light and walked over to the dresser to look at their pictures. There were so many pictures of them smiling together with the other boys and some with just the two of them. They had spent five years together. Niall picked up a picture of Harry picking up Niall. He looked like he was laughing while Niall saw himself smiling, ready to swing at Harry to put him down. Niall shook his head at the picture.

 

They had always drifted towards each other. Their personalities always mixed so well together that it was only a matter of time before someone made the move on the other. In this case, it was Harry who made the move on Niall. Harry was more straight up with what he wanted and he wanted Niall as soon as he laid his eyes on him. Niall was instantly intimidated by Harry’s bluntness and turned shy immediately afterwards.

 

Niall was a blushing mess and while he thought he was making a fool of himself, Harry thought he was absolutely stunning. Harry just shook his head with a small laugh and told him that they were going to date from that moment on and Niall just nodded back, still blushing but he was smiling this time. That was the beginning of Narry and then soon after they would become Zianourry.

 

Niall decided he loved Harry’s slow accent. He decided he loved how it flowed out like molasses and how he had that perfect Cheshire cat smile when he laughed. Niall decided he loved the way Harry’s bigger hand fit into his smaller one perfectly. He decided he loved how when they were fighting that Harry always sang to him to get him singing with him. He just loved Harry. Yet, Niall shook his head, he remembered one fight all so well.

* * *

 

_Harry Styles had a temper just as scary as Zayn Malik’s, except he never really showed it or at least tried very hard not to. The only person who really saw this side of Harry was Niall when they were fighting with each other. Harry could get so mad sometimes that he would throw things across the room but he would never throw anything or do anything to hurt Niall. He was just doing it to let off some steam._

_When he saw that his behavior was scaring Niall and making him cry more, he found that there was only one thing left for him to do to make Niall stop crying. Harry realized that if he sang to Niall then his lover would feel a little better. This would only work on Niall and all the boys knew it._

_Niall had his hands covering his crying face in front of Harry but he moved his fingers so he could watch his lover when he heard Harry sing softly, “I’m jealous, I’m overzealous… when I’m down I get real down… when I’m high I don’t come down…”_

_The blonde cried a little more when he saw Harry start to slowly make his way over as he continued singing, “I get angry, baby, believe me… I could love you just like that… and I could leave you just as fast…”_

_Niall gasped as he felt his lover’s hands grab his wrists and gently draw them away from his face. Tears were still making their journeys down his face as Harry sang with a soft smile, “But you don’t judge me… cause if you did, baby, I would judge you, too… no, you don’t judge me… cause if you did, baby, I would judge you, too…”_

_The blonde closed his eyes and cried even harder as he heard the emotion in Harry’s voice, “Cause I got issues but you got em, too… so give them all to me and I’ll give mine to you… bask in the glory of all our problems cause we got the kind of love it takes to solve em… yeah, I got issues…”_

_“And one of them is how bad I need you…”_

_It was Harry’s turn to gasp as Niall broke out of his grip and walked Harry into a wall as he sang at his long haired lover, “You do shit on purpose… you get mad and you break things, feel bad, try to fix things…”_

_Harry was scared that Niall was mad at him but then those thoughts left as soon as Niall put his hands on his face when he sang softly, “But you’re perfect… poorly wired circuit… and got hands like an ocean, push you out, pull you back in…”_

_Harry smiled and placed a hand on Niall’s, slightly squeezing the smaller hand as the blonde went on singing, “Cause you don’t judge me… cause if you did, baby, I would judge you, too… no, you don’t judge me… cause you see it from the same point of view…”_

_They moved closer together, singing the chorus together in harmony, “Cause I got issues but you got em, too… so give them all to me and I’ll give mine to you… bask in the glory of all our problems cause we got the kind of love it takes to solve em… yeah, I got issues…”_

_“And one of them is how bad I need you…”_

* * *

Niall couldn’t take it anymore so he left the room and made his way into Liam’s. His room was completely bare, even his workout equipment was gone… except for some pictures on his night stand. They were all little pictures but Niall noticed most of them were of him and Liam than all the boys combined. Niall smiled fondly at the picture of Liam bench pressing him at a concert. Liam’s face was contorted in concentration while Niall was clearly laughing.

 

The blonde had decided that he loved how caring Liam was towards him. He loved how Liam worked out as much as he did so that he would be strong enough to protect him and the others, but mainly Niall. He loved how Liam was the most level headed out of the five of them, even when he was mad. Niall decided he loved how Liam was the most Mrs. Horan than anyone. He loved how Liam whispered sweet nothings to him all the time. He just loved Liam.

 

He quickly left Liam’s room and slithered into Louis’s room. Louis’s room was about the same as Liam’s, except on his dresser were pictures of all of them and some notes. Most of the pictures were of him and Niall, which caused Niall to furrow his brow in confusion. Why were his ex lovers leaving these pictures behind? Niall gasped at one of the notes, it was a music sheet with his and Louis’s handwriting. Tears flooded his eyes, he remembered this day. They were supposed to be writing songs but instead they were writing notes to each other.

 

_L:  Ni?_

_N: Lou?_

_L:  Do you remember that day you fell out of my window?_

_N:  I sure do, you came jumping out after me!_

_L:  Well… you fell on the concrete and nearly broke your ass and you were bleeding all over the place and we rushed you off to the hospital… do you remember that?_

_N:  Yes, I do…_

_L:  Well, there’s something I never told you about that night…_

_N:  What didn’t you tell me?_

_L:  While you were sitting in the backseat eating a sandwich you thought was gonna be your last… I was falling deep, deeply in love with you and I never told you till just now…_

_N:  Aww, Louis! :)_

Niall decided he loved how Louis spoke without thinking sometimes. He decided he loved the pure British accent Louis had and how he pronounced words different just like he did. He loved the way Louis could be angry for no reason one second and then laughing hysterically the next second, it kept everyone on edge. He loved the way Louis could always make him laugh and always threatened people twice his size if they crossed him. He just loved Louis.

 

Last but not least was Zayn’s room. Zayn’s room was usually covered in posters and had his art hanging on the wall but now the only thing hanging was a beautifully detailed picture of Niall. Why was it just Niall? Niall knew that Zayn drew them all together once but maybe he took that one home and forget to bring the portrait of the blonde home… yeah, Niall let himself believe that was true. He walked over to the picture and tears rolled down his cheeks as he read the words scrawled at the bottom.

 

_To the boy who will never truly understand how beautiful he is… I will love you endlessly… xx_

Niall decided that he loved the whole “Bradford Bad Boy” act that Zayn was doing. He decided that he loved how openly protective he was of the blonde, more so than the others. He decided he loved the way Zayn said the word “like” in his sentences more than the average human. Niall decided he loved the way Zayn only let him comfort him when he was mad. He loved the way Zayn would call him just to ask if he could make Niall smile. He just loved Zayn.

Niall placed a hand over his mouth as he sobbed, as if he was trying to quiet himself in fear of other people hearing. He fell to the floor and wailed for his exes to come back. How could they have just left him here by himself? Didn’t think know how much he needed them? He stayed like that on the floor of Zayn’s room for the rest of the day, choosing to sleep there as well. Going through each of their rooms was the worst decision he made since they all left him alone.

* * *

 Hours turned into days and days turned into weeks. Niall was growing thinner as the days went by. He was on the couch watching TV when his phone vibrated and dinged in his pocket. He hardly even used his phone anymore but he kept the sound on in case he heard the Kim Possible ringtone go off, that meant that one of the boys had texted him. He looked in surprise when he saw it was from the group chat he had with Little Mix.

 

No one really knew it but Niall was really good friends with the girls from Little Mix. He had a group chat with them called “Little Bitches” that he used frequently with them when they were all free to text. It was a text from Perrie telling him to check the TV because he was being talked about. Another message was from Jesy telling him to hurry up and then Leigh-Anne and Jade texted telling him to text him after he watched it all.

 

Niall gulped and changed the channel and gasped when he heard a woman talking, “And so now Liam is the fourth 1D boy to release a solo single. His single is called “Strip that Down” and features Quavo! We first heard Zayn Malik’s “PILLOWTALK” followed by Louis Tomlinson and Steve Aoki’s “Just Hold On” and even Harry Styles’ song “Sign of the Times.” Liam makes four and now that just leaves Niall…”

 

“The rest of the boys have spoken out,” the woman continued, “but Niall has not been seen or heard from in a long time so we hope that he’s doing well! We also hope that this long hiatus from him means that he’s coming out with a solo single of his own! But as much as we love all their individual work, they leave us with one important question… will One Direction come back?”

 

Niall turned off the TV, his breathing was panicked. He gulped, the other boys had already moved on? They were making their own music now, forgetting all about Niall and their band. Niall quickly went to his phone and started texting the girls.

 

_Little Bitches_

_Niall:  What the hell was that? They all made songs on their own! When did this happen??_

_Jesy:  Where have you been??_

_Jade:  Yeah, we’ve been texting you to see if you were okay but you never answered us!_

_Perrie:  How are you doing?_

_Leigh-Anne:  And don’t lie, you know we can tell if you’re lying._

_Niall:  I don’t do much anymore… I haven’t played my guitar in a while or sing even… they really hurt me and it feels awful knowing they don’t miss me at all_

_Jesy:  Screw boys, honestly_

_Jade:  Jesy!_

_Jesy:  What? Honestly, show them you’re fine without them_

_Niall:  How do I do that? They probably know I’m a mess without them_

_Perrie:  When I need to get over an ex I write a song_

_Leigh-Anne:  We wrote “Shoutout to My Ex” after a breakup, you should try to write a song and get it out there! Show them you’re strong without them_

_Niall:  Promise you’ll be the first ones to listen to it?_

Niall smiled when each of the girls promised to be the first ones to listen to the song. Niall took a deep breath before grabbing his guitar from his and Harry’s room. He went downstairs to the studio they had in the basement and started strumming the strings. He felt himself sigh, he had missed playing his guitar. He grabbed some music sheets and got straight to work.

* * *

A week later and nearly a hundred music sheets later, Niall had finished his song. He sent it all in to see if it was good enough to be qualified as his single and he couldn’t have felt more relieved when they thought it was beautiful. They wanted him to record a music video for it as soon as possible but Niall stated that it had to be done on his terms. They instantly agreed.

 

Harry, Louis, Liam, and Zayn were all flipping the channels in their respective homes when they heard a woman talking, “And the wait is finally over! Niall Horan has finally come out of hiding to release a solo single of his own! It’s a beautiful and heart breaking song called “This Town” and it’s already topping the charts! He’s even dropped the music video, which reflects who he is very much!”

 

The four boys were instantly on their phones on YouTube searching for Niall’s music video. None of them had been in contact with each other since their fallout. They still worried for Niall since he was the most fragile and sensitive of them all. They had hoped that he would’ve been able to get over them but after hearing he came out with heart breaking music, they each had to make sure he was okay and that if he had moved on that no one hurt him.

 

They saw that the music video was in black and white. Niall was standing there with his guitar and a microphone stand in front of him. He had a striped sweater on but they all noticed he wasn’t wearing a smile. He looked tired and much too thin for their liking. He looked miserable as he started playing the guitar.

 

His eyes looked off into the distance longingly as he sang, _“Waking up to kiss you and nobody’s there… the smell of your_ cologne _still stuck in the air… it’s hard… yesterday I thought I saw your shadow_ s _running round, it’s funny how things never change in this old town… so far from the stars…”_

Harry put a hand over his mouth, all the boys knew this was about them. Niall looked so unhappy as he continued to sing, _“And I want to tell you everything, the words I never got to say the first time around… and I remember everything from when we were the children playing in this fairground… wish I was there with you now…”_

Tears were in each of their eyes as Niall started to sing the chorus of his song _, “Cause if the whole world was watching, I’d still dance with you… drive highways and byways to be there with you… over and over the only truth… everything comes back to you… mmmm….”_

They could literally see the tears in Niall’s eyes as he pushed himself to sing, _“I saw that you moved on with someone new… in the pub that we met he’s got his arms around you… it’s so hard… so hard…”_

Niall stepped away from the microphone for a second before repeated with sad eyes, “ _And I want to tell you everything, the words I never got to say the first time around… and I remember everything from when we were the children playing in this fairground… wish I was there with you now…”_

The blonde took a quick breath and the other boys knew he would do that to settle himself if he was about to cry on stage, “ _Cause if the whole world was watching, I’d still dance with you… drive highways and byways to be there with you… over and over the only truth… everything comes back to you…”_

Tears were flooding each of their eyes even more as Niall added a bit to the chorus of his song, _“You still make me nervous when you walk in the room… then butterflies they come alive when I’m next to you… over and over the only truth… everything comes back to you… mmmm…”_

The tears came running down each of their faces when they heard the most heartbreaking lyrics Niall could’ve ever wrote, _“And I know that it’s wrong that I can’t move on but there’s something about you…”_

They couldn’t listen anymore. They closed the app and got rid of it so they wouldn’t hear the rest of the song. While they were all off making solo music that shunned their entire relationship with each other, Niall put out music about how he couldn’t get over them and it made them feel awful. They were each upset about the situation and how they left Niall behind but thinking about that night and the fight…

 

It didn’t bring back good memories.

* * *

It had been a week since he released the song and Little Mix had actually asked him to come out to their studio to record a song with them. He would be featured on their new song “No More Sad Songs,” a song they personally wrote with Niall to help him get over his exes. They were going to a saloon type place for the music video.

 

Niall couldn’t help but get all excited as he was dressed in a flannel and some skinny jeans. He wore a cowboy hat and brought his guitar, strumming it at the beginning of the music video. He looked up and smiled at the girls, they all looked stunning. Jesy was the first to speak to him, “Just you wait, baby, they’re gonna see you shine with us…”

 

And they did.

 

The music video to their song was released a couple days later and the boys had to do a double take when they saw that Niall was featured on the song. The boys instantly felt their hearts race when they saw Niall appear in the beginning of the music video with his guitar again.

 

It went to Perrie after that and occasionally would show Niall and the other girls while the blonde girl sang, _“I keep trying, nothing’s working… I still wanna know if you’re alone… I keep trying to put this behind me… I still wanna know who’s taking you home…”_

The girls walked into the saloon and the music stopped. Everyone was staring at the girls, even Niall had stopped playing his guitar to smile and stare at them. The girls looked around at everyone until they eventually strutted over to the dance floor with Niall in tow.

 

Leigh-Anne was next to sing and as she sang guys asked the five friends to dance, _“For tonight I’m gonna get my mind off it… don’t care that someone’s got his hands all over my body… stay out all night, go where the music is loud so I don’t have to think about it… I’m begging please don’t play…”_

_“No more sad songs!”_

Niall could be heard singing the chorus with them but the boys were more concerned about the fact that Niall was dancing with other men in the music video. Sure, they had broken up but they still loved Niall unconditionally. Seeing him so happy dancing with other men hurt them.

 

After the chorus it was Jesy’s turn to sing and she was playing pool with the girls and Niall during her part, _“Dancing with danger… talking to strangers… don’t care where I go, just can’t be alone… they’ll never know me like you used to know me, no, oh…”_

Jade was up next but sometimes it would flash to Niall dancing with another man and even the five of them together, _“For tonight I’m gonna get my mind off it… don’t care that someone’s got his hands all over my body… stay out all night, go where the music is loud so I don’t have to think about it… I’m begging please don’t play…”_

_“No more sad songs!”_

The five of them were standing on the bar dancing with Niall in the middle and, God, did he look happy. After a little bit of the chorus the music changed a little and Niall was shown getting thrown off of a mechanical bull with the biggest smile on his face. It showed everyone having a good time in the music video but where was Niall’s true feature on the song?

 

Their question had been answered when Niall surprisingly started rapping by a pool table, _“Taste of the good life, can you keep pace? Can you ride shotgun in the fast lane with your eyes wide shut? Tell me do you have faith in me?”_

Shots of the girls riding the mechanical bull came up and even Niall with the girls acting unimpressed with him as he kept rapping, _“Stay the whole night till you feel the sun rays… can you forget everything your man’s sayin and let all of our pain be the champagne?”_

Niall picked up some pace as he continued rapping, _“Let me take the wheel from here and the penthouse suite chill from here! Show you the real is here… stare at the skies with you, only got eyes for you! Even when the lights off I’m visualizing you! I see your wonderwall, I get close to you… I watch you let it fall and get emotional… erase the past we are free at last!”_

_“I’m begging please don’t play no more sad songs!”_

The boys were done. Was Niall really over them already? Sure it had been a couple of months but could he really have gotten over all four of them in that time? They all loved each other more than anything so how could it be that Niall was so fine without them?

 

They still didn’t reach out to him.

* * *

 

 Niall had thanked Little Mix for letting him be on the song, it really did help him to be out having fun and singing again. Weeks went by but none of the boys said anything to him via text or even on twitter. Niall didn’t know what to do anymore. He wanted to move on but he wanted them back, too. He couldn’t have both.

 

The blonde wandered into the studio and sat there in the sound booth looking over all of their old songs. He smiled at some of them, thinking back on all the memories they had creating the song. He stared at one certain song before going out to make the music play in the sound booth.

 

Niall sat down on a stool in the middle of the booth and waited for Harry’s first part of the song to sing softly, _“I got a heart and I got a soul… believe me I used them both… we made a start, be it a false one I know… baby, I don’t want to feel alone…”_

He sighed shakily, that was Harry’s verse. He was the only one whose voice was deep and edgy enough for it. He was shaking as he sang Zayn’s part next, _“So kiss me where I lay down… my hands press to your cheeks… a long way from the playground…”_

 

He couldn’t sing Zayn’s verse as good as him. Niall felt tears sting at his eyes for the third time that day as he sang Harry’s part for the chorus, _“I have loved you since we were eighteen, long before we both thought the same thing… to be loved and to be in love… all I can do is say that these arms are made for holding you, oh, oh… I want a love like you made me feel when we were eighteen…”_

There was a small break and Niall found this as his time to compose himself as he sang his own verse of the song next, _“We took a chance… God knows we tried… yet all along I know we’d be fine…”_

Liam’s part was next but suddenly Niall froze when Liam’s voice rang through the sound booth, _“So pour me a drink, oh, love… let’s split the night wide open and we’ll see everything we can, living love in slow motion, motion, motion…”_

Niall turned to see Liam standing right by the door in the sound booth. Tears were pouring down Niall’s cheeks as Liam sang Zayn’s part, _“So kiss me where I lay down… my hands press to your cheeks… a long way from the playground…”_

Liam was holding Niall in a second, the blonde was sobbing into his chest as he heard the taller male sing softly into his ear, _“I have loved you since we were eighteen, long before we both thought the same thing… to be loved and to be in love… all I can do is say that these arms are made for holding you, oh, oh… I want a love like you made me feel when we were eighteen…”_

Liam held onto Niall tighter than he ever had before and Niall gripped his jacket as if he was going to rip it off. When Liam dared to pull away he finally saw Niall just how he never wanted to see him ever:  broken. Niall looked like a mess. His hair wasn’t styled as well as it usually was and his eyes looked like they wouldn’t stop releasing tears.

 

He took a deep breath before speaking, “I am so sorry, love… I am so incredibly sorry that I left you here by yourself. Niall, I… I should’ve came back for you sooner and I… no, I never should’ve left you in the first place. I’m such an idiot for agreeing with them when they said they wanted to end things… I hurt you so bad, Niall… I’ll never be able to forgive myself but please, babe, I will make it up to you, I promise.”

 

Niall just cried harder as Liam held his face and said firmly, “I don’t know if the others will ever come back but I will always be here with you. I promise to be right next to you when you fall asleep and I’ll be holding you when you wake up. My God, babe, I have missed you more than you can ever imagine… I love you so much, Niall, and I want to have the privilege of calling you mine again…”

 

“Will you let me, babe? Will you let me call you mine again?”

 

“God, Liam, you all hurt me so bad… you all left me alone…”

 

“I know, I know and I can never forgive myself for it but let me fix this, Niall… please…”

 

Liam was surprised when he felt Niall’s lips on his own. Liam held him against his body as close as he could get him, savoring every moment of the kiss. When they pulled away, Liam put his forehead on Niall’s so he could stare into those sparkling blue eyes he had missed so dearly. Niall smiled back at him with tears still pooling in his eyes.

 

“This is your last chance.”

* * *

 

 Niall couldn’t remember the last time he felt this happy. Liam pampered Niall daily for a month and made it clear he wasn’t going anywhere and that the pampering wasn’t stopping anytime soon. Niall was laying on the couch while Liam was in the kitchen. The TV was on and the blonde was aimlessly flipping through the channels until he heard a woman talking about his exes.

 

Liam stopped and turned to the TV when he heard the woman talking, “So it seems Liam has gone under the radar after the release of his new single. No one can seem to find him anywhere! Meanwhile Louis Tomlinson has also been laying low whereas Harry Styles and Zayn Malik have been talking about releasing a solo album! And-“

 

Liam had walked over and turned off the TV before Niall could get even sadder. Liam was frustrated, he had just gotten Niall to smile and laugh again and then news about two of their exes started to ruin all the progress he made with the blonde. Niall was looking down but then gasped when he felt Liam’s hands gently grab his face. Liam had a soft smile on his face.

 

“Let’s go for a hike, love.”

 

Niall eventually allowed Liam to take him on a hike. They had to travel a bit but Niall always loved car rides with the boys. Liam was driving and he was having the time of his life getting distracted by his boyfriend dancing and singing obnoxiously in the front seat with him. Suddenly a familiar song came on and Liam gulped. He was afraid Niall was going to grow quiet on him.

 

But he was wrong. Niall just grinned and turned the music up as he belted out, _“Her name is Noel! I have a dream about her, she rings my bell! I got gym class in half an hour! Oh, how she rocks in keds and tube socks… but she doesn’t know who I am… and she doesn’t give a damn about me!”_

Liam couldn’t help but laugh and join in with his lover when it was time for the chorus, _“Cause I’m just a teenage dirtbag, baby! I’m just a teenage dirtbag, baby! Listen to Iron Maiden maybe with me!”_

 

“You’re so beautiful like this, Niall.”

 

“What do you mean, Liam?”

 

“This is the Niall I know and love.”

 

Niall felt his face heating up and it didn’t stop when Liam grabbed his hand so he had one hand on the steering wheel. Niall smiled again at the lyrics of the song and sang again, _“Man, I feel like mold. It’s prom night and I am lonely… lo and behold, she’s walking over to me. This must be fake, my lip starts to shake… how does she know who I am? And why does she give a damn about me?”_

“C’mon, Payno, this is all you!”  


Liam shook his head and sang back to his lover in that perfect high pitch he can do when he sings, _“I’ve got two tickets to Iron Maiden, baby… come with me,_ Niall, _and don’t say “maybe…” I’m just a teenage dirtbag, baby, like_ Niall…”

 

The blonde gasped and smiled when his boyfriend changed the lyrics of the song and ended with a kiss to the paler boy’s hand. Niall didn’t even bother singing the rest of the song. He just smiled and stared lovingly at his lover. Liam knew just what to do to get his mind off of the others. He needed this.

 

When they got to the mountain trail, Niall instantly asked his boyfriend if he remembered to bring food. Liam shook his head and smiled, telling Niall that his backpack was stuffed with enough food for the both of them. Niall lifted an eyebrow, as if he was saying he didn’t recall sharing the food with him.

 

The two of them were off with Liam leading and Niall tagging along shortly behind. Liam was talking to Niall when he felt something latch onto his backpack. Instantly thinking an animal had attacked him, Liam started sprinting ahead screaming. He could hear Niall yelling to him and when he finally stopped running, he saw Niall chasing after him and picking up all the snacks he had dropped.

 

Apparently Niall didn’t want to tell him he was going into his backpack for a snack so Liam took off for nothing. Niall was laughing at Liam and it was the laugh that could echo off of walls because it was so loud. Liam let out a love filled sigh, this was the way he always wanted Niall to be. He was such a carefree and happy guy, he was perfect.

 

After much stumbling around and complaining of hunger from Niall, they finally reached the top of the decent sized mountain they climbed. They both just stood there at the top, mouths open in awe at the beautiful view of the trees and neighboring mountains. Niall instantly handed Liam his phone, asking him to take a picture of him. Liam smiled and took a bunch of pictures, sending a lone picture of Niall facing the view to his phone.

 

“Want me to get a picture of you, Liam?”

 

“Actually, I want a picture with the both of us, love.”

 

Niall smiled and they set Liam’s phone to take the picture in ten seconds. They rushed over to the edge and took a picture of them. In the picture it looked like Liam was trying to save Niall from falling off the edge of the mountain. Niall was sneaky and sent the picture to himself, favoring their pictures together over the pictures of just him.

 

The two of them sat there on the top just admiring the scenery. Most of the time Liam was just staring at Niall, loving how Niall thought just about everything was amazing. Liam looked down, Niall even thought he was amazing. He was grateful that the blonde took him back after leaving him all alone for so long. Yet, he was making up for it now and even fixing Niall in the process.

 

Niall fell asleep on the ride home, causing Liam to smile at how Niall was telling the other boy about his day in his sleep. Liam sat there nodding and making noises of interest to his lover the entire ride home, favoring Niall over the radio. When they got back home, it was getting late. Liam picked Niall up and carried him back into their home, smiling as Niall curled up closer to him.

 

When they were in bed, Liam thought that now was the perfect time to post his picture of Niall. He smiled and posted the picture onto his Instagram with a caption of _no view is more beautiful than you…_

 

Liam was surprised when he actually saw that Niall posted the picture of the two of them a few hours ago. When had Niall managed to do that without him noticing? Liam’s eyes widened at the caption, _thanks for saving me…_

 

Liam looked over at Niall’s sleeping form. That was such a powerful caption that only the boys would understand. Liam saved Niall from himself when he walked back into his life. While the fans would just think Niall was being funny, Liam knew the rest of the boys would understand what Niall really meant by it.

* * *

 

 Some days were better than others, Liam noticed. Some days Niall would be as chipper and cheeky as Liam knew but then other days he would mope around and not want to do anything. Liam could find Niall strumming his guitar lazily in the studio in the basement sometimes. It was as if he wanted to sing but couldn’t find the motivation to do it. That broke Liam’s heart and he knew he and the rest of the boys were the reason for it.

 

Niall was sitting in the studio on his stool when he heard the familiar music of one of their songs. Niall sighed at the song and didn’t even look up when Liam entered the room with a stool of his own. He sat there across from Niall, waiting for the blonde to look up but he never did.

 

Liam grabbed his hand and sang Harry’s part softly to him, _“Who’s that shadow holding me hostage? I’ve been here for days… who’s this whisper telling me that I’m never gonna get away?”_

 

The Irishman looked up and it hurt Liam’s heart to see him so sad. He was definitely missing the other boys. Liam knew Niall loved having him here but he missed everyone together. Niall just barely managed to sing Zayn’s part back, _“I know they’ll be coming to find me soon… but I feel I’m getting used to being held by you!”_

 

Liam smiled sadly as the two lovers sang together, _“Baby, look what you’ve done to me… baby, look what you’ve done now… baby, I’ll never leave if you keep holding me this way, oh… baby, look what you’ve done to me… baby, you’ve got me tied down… baby, I’ll never leave if you keep holding me this way, oh…”_

Just as Liam was going to sing Louis’s part, the soothingly familiar higher voice rang through the room, _“Who’s this man that’s holding your hand and talking ‘bout your eyes? Used to sing about being free but now he’s changed his mind…”_

Tears instantly flooded Niall’s eyes as he stood up and turned to face Louis. Louis was grinning sadly as the blond managed to squeak out, _“I know they’ll be coming to find me soon… but my Stockholm Syndrome is in the room… yeah, I fell for you!”_

Louis opened his arms and Niall ran into them, lowering them to the ground to hold onto each other. Niall sobbed into Louis’s chest as the brown haired male sang alone, _“Baby, look what you’ve done to me… baby, look what you’ve done now… baby, I’ll never leave if you keep holding me this way, oh… baby, look what you’ve done to me… baby, you’ve got me tied down… baby, I’ll never leave if you keep holding me this way, oh…”_

“Niall, look at me,” Louis gently lifted Niall’s chin to look at him, “I’m a bloody idiot. I left you here on your own for months and I’m just thankful Liam came to fix all of our mistakes but… I need to own up to the mistake I made the day I just left… I was a complete arse to leave you here on your own for so long and, baby, I’m so sorry for everything… you know you’ve always been the light of me life, right?”

 

The blonde nodded sadly and let Louis continue, “I know I don’t deserve you at all, you deserve to have Liam here because I know he’s been taking good care of you and making sure you’re safe but… I want to be a part of your life again, please… I want to be the one you joke around with when Liam’s being the daddy. I want to make you smile and laugh again… will you let me, baby?”  


“Let me be one of the reasons for your smile again… please, Ni…”

 

“You’re a bloody idiot, Lou…”

 

“Ni-“

 

“But I’m a bloody idiot, too…”

 

Louis’s eyes widened when he felt Niall’s lips pressed on his own. Louis smiled as he pulled away to kiss Niall’s face all over, both Louis and Liam were smiling when they heard Niall’s laugh bounce off the walls. Together, Liam and Louis could be that balance that Niall needed… well, they hoped they would.

 

Niall would be lying if he said Louis wasn’t a hothead sometimes. The three of them had been living together again for a month but Louis was entirely jealous of the time Liam spent with Niall. Louis was never trying to pick a fight with Liam in front of Niall but the blonde couldn’t help but overhear them arguing sometimes at night. Niall could even hear some of Louis’s snarky comments at Liam and the other male just took them.

 

“Lou…”

 

“What’s up, Nialler?”

 

“Why do you hate Liam so much?”

 

Louis’s eyes widened, Niall thought he hated Liam? Liam wasn’t here at the moment, he was actually out grocery shopping for the three of them. He went out in a disguise so the reporters and paparazzi wouldn’t pester him with questions about why he just dropped a single and disappeared. The would probably also bother him about where he was staying and if he saw Niall and the other boys. Liam just didn’t want to deal with it.

 

“Niall,” Louis sat down next to him on the couch, “I don’t hate Liam at all… you’ve been hearing our fights, haven’t you? Yeah, we get on each other’s nerves but I don’t hate him, Ni. I’m just… I’m mad at myself and jealous he got to spend all that time with you… I mean it’s my own fault for leaving but…”

 

Niall crawled into Louis’s lap and made himself comfortable as he changed the channel so they could watch _The Notebook._ Niall let out a content sigh as he murmured, “I wish you two could get along like we used to… but I guess I’d rather you argue with Liam than to not have you here at all… I’m happy you came back, Lou.”

 

“Me too, Nialler…”

 

When Liam came back he smiled at the sight of Louis’s head thrown back on the couch, snoring softly. Liam set the groceries down and walked over to see Niall curled into Louis. The brown haired boy had Niall in his arms protectively and Liam couldn’t resist, he had to take a picture! He quickly snapped a picture and made sure he posted it on Instagram saying _wouldn’t have them any other way…_

It was safe to say that Louis was annoyed at the picture when he woke up but he couldn’t help but laugh at himself since his head was thrown back. Niall had even compared Louis to a giraffe. The brown haired male rubbed the back of his neck, it was actually quite sore from that uncomfortable position. Niall smiled and carefully started to rub and massage his neck, earning moans of pleasured pain.

 

Liam shook his head at them and sat down on the other side of Niall, wrapping an arm around his shoulders. Niall wasn’t really paying attention to what was going on in the movie but Louis and Liam watched in interest as the couple began to fight.

 

_“You’re bored and you know it and you wouldn’t be here if there wasn’t something missing!”_

_“Arrogant son of a bitch!”_

_“Will you just stay with me?”_

_“Stay with you? What for? Look at us! We’re already fighting!”_

Louis and Liam looked at each other as the man in the movie stated angrily _, “Well that’s what we do! We fight! You tell me when I’m being an arrogant son of a bitch and I tell you when you’re being a pain in the ass, which you are 99% of the time! I’m not afraid to hurt your feelings. You have, like, a two second rebound rate and you’re back doing the next pain in the ass thing!”_

_“So what?”_

The two boys felt guilt pooling in the pit of their stomachs as the man continued, _“So it’s not going to be easy, it’s going to be really hard and we’re going to have to work at this every day but I wanna do that because I want you. I want all of you, forever… you and me, every day… will you do something for me? Please…”_

 

Louis and Liam looked away from each other, the couple fighting reminded them of the way they’ve been fighting with each other so much lately. It was true, Liam did tell Louis when he was being an arrogant son of a bitch and Louis was telling Liam he was being a pain in the ass. Louis wasn’t afraid to hurt Liam’s feelings and maybe that was where he was actually hurting Niall too.

 

When they were listening to the man in the movie talk about having to work at it every day, they thought of their relationship with Niall. They both wanted all of him forever. They knew it wasn’t going to be easy but they wanted to work at it if it meant that they could wake up to Niall every morning and fall asleep next to him every night.

 

“What’s wrong, lads? You both going to cry or something?”

 

They both shook their heads and smiled fondly at Niall when he started to yawn. He would definitely fall asleep soon, even though he had just woken up from a nap. It didn’t take long before Niall was sleeping peacefully on the couch.

 

Louis looked over at Liam as he stated, “Maybe I’ve been a bit rash lately about everything… it’s just, I’ve lost so much time with him and I really just wanted to make up for lost times and I just got so angry because you came back first and-“

 

“Mate, there’s no need to apologize. I understand, I’d be the same way if I was you.”

 

“Shut up, Liam, no you wouldn’t!”

 

“... yeah, you’re right.”

 

“It’s not going to be easy but… let’s work on this.”

 

The two boys smiled at each other. Liam turned off the TV and opened his arms for Louis to place Niall. Louis turned off all the lights and raced in front of Liam so that he could open the door for the two of them. Liam smiled and nodded his head as a way of thanking him. Louis smiled and closed the door before crawling into bed on Niall’s free side. Niall shifted in his sleep and curled into Louis’s chest.

 

Louis smiled and looked at Liam, who chuckled quietly. Liam and Louis both wrapped their arms around Niall, enjoying the feeling of their Irishman sound asleep with them. They both closed their eyes, falling into a peaceful slumber. They could get used to it just being the three of them…

 

But could Niall?

* * *

 

 Niall loved his time with the two boys but he still missed Zayn and Harry. He was also hoping that maybe they would come back but they were too focused on their solo careers. If they were too busy for him then Niall could just get used to it just being Liam and Louis. After that night, the three of them got along even better. There weren’t a lot of fights anymore and Niall loved it.

 

They both spoiled him with love and affection. He could always find himself laughing with them and it was just what he needed. Sure, Liam was nothing but sweet to him but he needed someone like Louis to really get him laughing and keep him smiling.

 

Yet, after a while Niall found himself dragging himself around the house again. Liam had told Louis about how he gets like that when he’s really starting to miss the other boys. Louis let out an irritated sigh, he wanted the other two boys to come back but it would be unfair of him to force them back if they didn’t really want to be here anymore.

 

Louis found Niall in the studio just like he had before. Liam was walking in and placing a third stool right next to his. Louis smiled at that and then went to pick the music for the song he knew they were all about to sing together. Niall and Liam would definitely pick some slow sad song but Louis wanted to get them up and moving with this song.

 

Louis smirked as the music played when he entered the room and sat next to Liam. The music was so upbeat that Niall couldn’t help but move a little bit with it. Liam gently nudged Louis with a smile, silently telling him that the music and song was a good choice.

 

Liam nodded his head a couple times with the beat before looking at Niall and singing, _“Hello, hello, I know it’s been a while but, baby, I got something that I really wanna let you know, yeah… something that I wanna let you know…”_

Louis stood up from his stool and danced at Niall as he sang to the blonde, _“You say, you say to everybody that you hate me! Couldn’t blame you cause I know I left you all alone, yeah… I know that I left you all alone…”_

The two boys dropped to their knees in front of Niall and sang Harry’s part together, _“And, yeah, now I’m back at your door… you’re looking at me unsure… I should’ve seen it before… you’re all I think about, baby!”_

Niall was about to sing but the boys put both of their index fingers on his lips as they sang to him _, “I was so stupid for letting you go but I-I-I know you’re still the one! You might have moved on but,_ boy _, you should know that I-I-I know you’re still the one! I know I say it too much but I will never give up! I was so stupid for letting you go but I-I-I know you’re still the one! I-I-I know you’re still the one!”_

Niall smiled and pushed their fingers off of his lips so that he could stand up and sing, _“Hello, hello, I’m really hoping you’ll forgive me… I keep talking, begging, tell me what I wanna hear, yeah… boy, just tell me what I wanna hear…”_

This time Niall sang Harry’s second verse with the other two boys _, “I tried, I tried to start again and find somebody but I remember all the times and all the words we said, yeah… I can’t get it out of my head…”_

Niall froze like a statue when Zayn’s voice broke through the room, _“And, yeah, now I’m back at your door… you’re looking at me unsure… I should’ve seen it before… you’re all I think about, baby!”_

Suddenly, a strong pair of arms was turning him around and lifting him up. Niall wrapped his legs around Zayn’s waist while his hands were snaked around his neck for support, even though Zayn had a secure grip on the smaller male.

 

Niall felt tears fall from his eyes when he heard that gorgeous voice sing to him, _“I was so stupid for letting you go but I-I-I know you’re still the one! You might have moved on but,_ boy _, you should know that I-I-I know you’re still the one! I know I say it too much but I will never give up! I was so stupid for letting you go but I-I-I know you’re still the one!”_

Niall buried his face in the crook of Zayn’s neck and the taller male could feel his shirt getting wet from the blonde’s tears. Zayn kissed his head before saying softly, “Come one now, Niall, you know I hate to see you cry… especially when I’m the one whose gone and made you cry… come on, baby, let me see that beautiful face and that pretty little smile again… you know I’ve missed you so much…”

 

Zayn had this way with Niall that none of the boys understood. No matter how angry or upset with Zayn Niall would be, he would always forgive Zayn and do what he asked. It was probably because he saved this incredibly soft side of him for only Niall. The blonde looked up at Zayn and he couldn’t help but smile at the tan skinned male.

 

Zayn shook his head with a smile before continuing, “I’m so sorry it took me so long to come back to you… I just felt so trapped singing this boy band music that I wanted to be myself and make my own music… sometimes what we sing isn’t really my cup of tea and I’m so sorry I never texted you or called you to tell you that it was never you I was walking away from… I needed to be myself so I had to get away…”

 

Niall was wiping his tears away as Zayn went on, “I know that’s not an excuse for leaving you here by yourself… I should’ve came back and just recorded here but I guess I just didn’t want to be reminded of that whole boy band aura, you know? I truly am sorry, Niall, I never meant to hurt you as bad as I did. I know you needed me when you were alone and I was never there to protect you…”

 

“If you’ll have me again, I-“

 

“Please don’t leave me again… please don’t go…”

 

“Never again, love… never again…”

* * *

 

 Things didn’t go back to normal but they were close. Niall felt a lot more comfortable knowing Zayn was there with them now. So now whenever Liam and Louis would fight, Niall would crawl to Zayn and the dark haired male would carry him away from them and they would draw together. Zayn was much better than he was but they still loved the time they spent together, nonetheless.

 

Over the next couple months, the boys noticed Niall was experiencing some slight mood swings. Some days he would be happy while other days he would be sad and even angry. He would snap at the boys and then cry and beg for forgiveness right after. The three boys would always hold him and tell him it was okay but they knew it wasn’t. Niall wasn’t complete.

 

They were missing Harry and he was a key part in Niall’s life just like the rest of them. Yet, Harry was even more special to the blonde. Harry was the one Niall had been with first before the other boys came along. Harry was his first real love and they both cherished that. Niall fell in love with the other boys and Harry was fine with sharing him with them as long as Niall promised he would never forget that he had him first and that they meant something even more. Niall promised.

 

Not having Harry around for almost a year really took a toll on him. Some days he would just lock himself in their shared room and not let anyone in. The first couple times the boys got worried when Niall locked himself in the room. Louis was screaming to be let in while Liam was trying to peacefully negotiate a way in. Zayn, on the other hand, smashed the door and broke in to make sure he was okay.

 

They found Niall sobbing in the corner of the room with all of his and Harry’s pictures near him. Niall pushed himself away from the boys but eventually settled into their embrace, sobbing about how much he missed Harry and how he wanted him back. They wanted Harry back, too. They couldn’t fill the void that Harry left. They were 80% complete but that wasn’t enough.

 

While the three boys were watching TV, Niall slithered into the basement with his guitar and music sheets. He had been working on a song for a while now and he wanted to sing it. It was completely about Harry. He figured if he wrote a song about Harry and sang it then he could finally get himself to move on and just be content with being with the other guys.

 

Niall wasn’t as sneaky as he thought because the boys followed him down. Just as Louis was going to walk in, Liam pulled him aside and shook his head. Niall wanted to be alone so they would just have to leave him be this time. Louis huffed, annoyed that Liam was right.

 

They listened as Niall strummed the guitar, playing something that the boys were unfamiliar with. This would be an original by Niall, then. The boys listened in, not even noticing that someone else was standing with them.

 

They heard Niall take a deep breath before he sang _, “Those green eyes and that contagious smile and those lips, and the way they verbalize. Oh, New York City! What a beauty to our eyes… then you held my hand for the first time, you looked at me and smiled…”_

The boys instantly looked down, Niall’s voice sounded so hurt when he was singing, _“Everything was perfect, everything was great… I was on a fairytale, it’s a dream while I’m awake… but days past and we weren’t there and it felt like we didn’t care anymore, anymore…”_

Niall felt tears prick at his eyes but he kept trying to blink them away as he kept going, _“But why’d we say goodbye? We said we didn’t have enough time for both of us… we said we’d try to work things out but all a sudden we’re all tired and said goodbye…”_

They all knew he was crying when he sang the chorus of his song _, “It’s sad not to hear you calling me up at three A.M… no one’s ever gonna sing to me Stevie Wonder’s songs again… I’ll miss your kiss and your curly hair but now that we’ve said goodbye I’ll pretend that I’m alright, that I’m alright, I’m alright… you said you didn’t wanna see me cry, I’ll pretend that I’m alright, I’m alright, I’m alright…”_

Niall strummed the guitar differently as he kept singing, _“I’ll miss you holding hotel keys and watching you sing to girls with happy tears. When you’re on stage, you point at me and you sing to me as I chant your name… and as the spotlight disappears, it’s a different person that I’m with… so much simpler, so much better and just so beautiful…”_

The boys outside the room felt tears in their eyes but they managed to blink them away when they heard Niall sing, _“The way we laughed with_ three _more guys… you walked around naked and covered my eyes, you’re just so funny… I can’t believe we’re letting this go…”_

Niall’s voice grew softer as he sang, _“But why’d we say goodbye? We said we didn’t have enough time for both of us… we said we’d try to work this out… but all a sudden we’re all tired and said goodbye!”_

Zayn was about to walk in there when someone he didn’t even realize was beside him grabbed him to let Niall sing, _“It’s sad not to hear you calling me up at three A.M… no one’s ever gonna sing to me Stevie Wonder’s songs again… I’ll miss your kiss and your curly hair but now that we’ve said goodbye I’ll pretend that I’m alright, that I’m alright, I’m alright… you said you didn’t wanna see me cry, I’ll pretend that I’m alright…”_

 

The three boys gasped at the person but then turned when they heard Niall sing a different verse _, “Maybe it’s time to let it go, maybe it’s better off alone, maybe today’s the wrong time… someday we’ll learn to be strong… maybe you’re right about this, we’re busy people with busy lives… we can’t keep up on this… so goodbye…”_

* * *

 

“Niall…”

 

“… H-Harry…”

 

Niall put his guitar on the ground and slowly turned to face the boy he fell in love with. His hair was a little shorter than when Niall last saw him but then again, that was almost a year ago. Niall wanted to run into Harry’s arms and take him back just like he had done with the other boys. But he knew it was never going to be that easy. Harry was his first love. Niall would make him work hard to get him back.

 

Harry took a step forward, noting that Niall took a hesitant step back. Harry sighed but still spoke, “I know you’re probably angry with me and I don’t blame you. I walked out on you and I was the one who promised to never leave you alone… I was supposed to be there for you through it all just like I told you I would be…”

 

“Then why weren’t you, Harry? I thought you would be the first one to come back…”

 

“I wanted to come back but-“

 

“But you were too busy enjoying the single life and making your own solo album.”

 

“I… you were the one out enjoying the single life with Little Mix!”

 

Harry could literally hear Louis slapping his forehead, calling Harry an idiot. Niall’s eyes hardened as he hissed, “Maybe I got a single out there and maybe I got featured on one of Little Mix’s songs but I was still waiting here for everyone! I never made a fucking solo album like you did! You made sure it was fucking perfect too, didn’t you? Cause you were gone for basically a year! I guess I didn’t mean _that_ much to you.”

 

The long haired male rolled his eyes as Louis could be heard making snarky comments about Harry in the background. Harry took another step closer to Niall, who took another step back. Harry looked at the blonde and snapped, “You know better than anyone that you mean the world to me, Niall, so stop acting like you don’t mean anything to me.”

 

Only Harry felt comfortable talking to Niall with a slight attitude because they had been together before the others came along. Niall wasn’t going to have that so he glared back, “You sure do have a funny way of showing that then! First you want to break the band up and our whole relationship, then you actually go through with it and leave me here alone, and then you drop your own solo album so excuse me if I don’t see how in all of that mess that you actually give a shit about me!”

 

“I’m trying to apologize! Why do you have to be so difficult?! You took them back!”

 

Niall was furious that Harry would dare to bring the others into this. Niall marched over to Harry and hissed at him, “Liam was the first one to come back and he didn’t last long away from me! Louis and Zayn came right after and you still didn’t come! I could tell they didn’t want to break up but I think you were fine without me! I took them back because they needed me as much as I needed them. You don’t need me, Harry…”

 

“I don’t need you?! Niall, what the hell! Of course I need you!”

 

“You didn’t need me all year, Harry!”

 

Harry lost all anger he had when Niall cried in front of him, “I cried so much over all of you this whole year. I never wanted to break up but you all left me behind… Harry you were my first love, I thought for sure you would come back for me first but you were the last one to come back… you hurt me so much, Harry, so much more than I thought you ever would… I don’t know if I should even take you back…”

 

Those words stung Harry’s heart, guilt was in the pit of his stomach after he heard Niall say that. Niall had to take him back! Harry was so lost without Niall, he missed his blonde Irishman dearly. He wouldn’t know what to do if he couldn’t be with Niall. Niall was the one Harry wanted for the rest of his life. He didn’t want to go on knowing he could never marry Niall.

 

Niall was crying and Harry knew nothing he could say would change Niall’s mind. Harry looked down in defeat before an idea popped into his mind. He looked over at Niall with a soft smile on his face. Whenever he and Niall fought the only way he could settle it all would be by singing. Nothing he said would change Niall’s mind but maybe he could sing and change the blonde’s mind.

 

Harry kept his famous Cheshire cat smile on his face as he sang softly to Niall, _“I’m gonna paint you by numbers and color you in… if things go right we could frame it and put you on a wall…”_

 

Niall just cried harder when Harry moved closer and grabbed his hands, singing with that damn smile on his face, _“And it’s so hard to say it but I’ve been here before… now I’ll surrender up my heart and swap it for yours…”_

Harry let out a relieved sigh when Niall allowed him to hold him close as he sang, _“I’m out of touch, I’m out of love… I’ll pick you up when you’re getting down and out of all these things I’ve done, I think I love you better now… I’m out of sight, I’m out of mind, I’ll do it all for you anytime and out of all these things I’ve done, I think I love you better now…”_

“No, Harry! You can’t just sing me a love song and think everything will be okay!”

 

Niall pushed himself out of Harry’s grasp, earning whines from Louis, the peanut gallery. Harry grabbed Niall’s hands and tried again with a different song, _“I’m short of breath standing next to you… I’ll be the dangerous ledge, you be the parachute… blue and green below is a masterpiece but you are beautiful like I’ve never seen…”_

The long haired male held Niall’s face in his hands, forcing blue eyes to stare into green ones as Harry sang, _“Go ahead and laugh even if it hurts… go ahead and pull the pin… what if we could risk everything we have and just let our walls cave in?”_

“I have loved you since we were eighteen,” Harry started with tears in his eyes, “I’ll love you when I’m fat and old and my hair’s falling out. I can’t let you go, my Stockholm Syndrome is too strong… you got me tied down. I was so stupid for letting you go but I know that you’re still the one, you’ll always be the one.”

 

Niall’s eyes widened, he used lyrics from each of the songs he sang when the other boys came back to him. How did he know? Niall shook his head and wiped the tears away, even though new ones started to make their journeys down his cheeks. Harry put his head down in shame. All of his efforts were in vain. It was too late. Niall didn’t want to be with him anymore. Harry felt tears falling down his cheeks, his shoulders shaking.

 

Harry dropped to his knees, his arms wrapping themselves around himself as if he was comforting himself. Harry was so frustrated with himself. He knew he should’ve never left but there was this voice telling him to get away. He listened to the voice over Niall and that had caused him to lose the love of his life.

 

Harry was surprised when he felt two soft hands on his cheeks. He looked up into soft blue eyes and gasped as Niall sang to him, _“Sweet creature, had another talk about where it’s going wrong but we’re still young… we don’t know where we’re going but we know where we belong… no, we started two hearts in one home…”_

This was one of Harry’s songs from his solo album! Niall actually listened and liked his music? Harry was at a loss for words listening to the blonde give a small smile as he went on, _“It’s hard when we argue… we’re both stubborn, I know… but oh…”_

Happy tears started to pour down the Englishman’s cheeks listening to Niall belt out his own song, _“Sweet creature, sweet creature… wherever I go, you bring me home… sweet creature, sweet creature… when I run out of rope, you bring me home…”_

“Niall… I-“

 

“I’ll always be the one to bring you home, Harry.”

* * *

 

 One Direction was back and better than ever now. They were finally complete but they were taking some time off so they could make sure they patched their entire relationship back together. The world knew about how they all shared Niall and over time they got used to it and actually really liked it. Of course the boys put their solo careers on hold but the next time One Direction had a break they agreed to let each other focus on their own career.

 

Zayn still wanted to get another album out there and Liam wanted to get more music out there but Louis and Harry were just fine spending time with their families. Sometimes the two thought about making their own music but they pushed the thoughts away because they had gotten enough of their music out there. Niall did push Louis to get himself out there more, he wanted Louis to have more than just one single but the other male always brushed it off.

 

The boys were all in the living room sprawled across each other. Niall was laughing as they all tried to make one giant remix of all of their solo songs together. Niall could barely sing his own song because he was too busy laughing about how out of nowhere Louis would cry out “darling just hold on!” And once Louis did that Zayn could be heard belting “pillowtalk!” out of the blue. It sounded like a jumbled mess but Niall wouldn’t have had it any other way.

 

Niall looked at each of his lovers with a smile on his face. He looked at Liam, the first one who came back for him. He owed so much to Liam for being the first one to come back and he tried to make Niall complete all on his own. Liam had one of the purest hearts Niall had ever seen and he was so grateful to have him in his life as a lover. Liam kept him safe.

 

He looked over at Louis, the second one to make his way back to him. He thought Louis was going to be the last one to come back to him because he could be so hotheaded sometimes but Niall learned that Louis had a soft spot for him. Louis came back because he wanted to make Niall happy. He wanted to be the reason for the smile on his face of the laugh coming out of his mouth. Niall was thankful Louis came back sooner than expected because he needed him. Louis kept him happy.

 

Niall turned to Zayn, the third one to find his way back. He knew Zayn was going to be the third one to come back because he was one of the most stubborn people in the band, aside from Louis. Zayn was the one he went to for comfort and support. Zayn was the one who could get him to smile when Louis couldn’t. Zayn was special to Niall. He saved his more vulnerable and fun side for Niall and the blonde knew Zayn did that for no one else. Zayn kept him carefree.

 

And finally there was Harry, the last one to come back for him. He thought that Harry would be the first one back but he wasn’t. Harry was Niall’s first love, Niall was the one that Harry knew he wanted to marry from the first day he laid eyes on him. Harry was the only one Niall could truly be himself around and words could never describe how happy that made Niall. Harry kept him loved.

 

The boys couldn’t help but notice Niall was looking at all of them so they turned and smiled at him, causing him to laugh. They silently determined that they didn’t come back for each other, they came back for Niall. They needed him as much as he needed them. Niall was their sunshine, he kept them feeling younger than they actually were. He did so much more for them than he would ever know.

 

_He kept them together._

**Author's Note:**

> Thank you all for reading my first story! I hope to have more work out for One Direction and more! I hope you all enjoyed this and I recommend listening to the songs when they come up! The songs do not belong to be and all credit goes to the artists who made them! :)
> 
> Songs in order of appearance just in case people don't know the songs: "Issues" by Julia Michaelson, "This Town" by Niall Horan, "No More Sad Songs" by Little Mix featuring Machine Gun Kelly, "18" by One Direction, "Teenage Dirtbag" by Wheatus (but One Direction has a cover of this song), "Stockholm Syndrome" & "Still the One" by One Direction, "I'm Alright" by ??? I haven't found a name but if you type that in on YouTube it will come up, "Lego House" by Ed Sheeran, "Heart" by Sleeping At Last, and finally "Sweet Creature" by Harry Styles. :)
> 
> Thank you all again :)


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